


Pet Project

by teecup_angel



Series: The Slytherin King and the Masked Boy [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: ... kinda, ... sorta, Alternate Universe - No Voldemort, Dark But Not Evil!Harry, Everyone Is Alive, Harry and Tom go to Hogwarts together, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-28
Updated: 2016-08-28
Packaged: 2018-08-11 13:13:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7893982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/teecup_angel/pseuds/teecup_angel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry knew that Tom Riddle had the potential to be something more.</p>
<p>Prequel to “The Black Family Reunion”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Pet Project

**Author's Note:**

> So I remembered some people wanted me to write how Harry and Tom got together in this verse so… tadah.
> 
> This will only have two chapters but I am unsure when I’ll be able to make the second chapter… CaBR and Light House take precedence. Sorry. 
> 
> This is also part of the ‘big’ uploads brought to you by the fact that it’s my birthday this Sunday, August 28. XD
> 
>  
> 
> Warnings and Notes:  
> 1\. Unbeta’ed  
> 2\. This is probably not British English. I don't even know if you can count is as American English. But, hey, at least, it's English?  
> 3\. Tom goes to Hogwarts with Harry cliché  
> 4\. Almost everyone is alive, there’s no Voldemort, Harry was raised by his parents and Tom never became Voldemort (……… or he has yet to become Voldemort? I don’t know. I really didn’t think that far XD)   
> 5\. Non-evil but Dark!Harry  
> 6\. Lots of narration and summarization of events  
> 7\. Prepare your heart, Tom is a prat

Harry was ten when he realized he was Dark.

 

Being the offspring of two notable Light couple, it had come as a shock. He had been researching the difference between Light and Dark then because he wanted to understand why a lot of his father’s friends looked at his dear Reggie and Uncle Sevvie differently. Even his dear Padfoot and Uncle Moony had instances of such strange stares.

 

After weeks of research, Harry concluded that he had more similarities with the Dark families than the Light families, most noticeably his desire to learn all kinds of magic and a dislike for the regulations and banning done by the ministry. He also liked the traditional magical holidays than its Muggle counterpart.

 

He did, however, enjoyed muggle literature and media more than the Wizarding ones. In his defence, the Wizarding ones seem a tad… boring in comparison.

 

Not to mention, he did not held the same blood supremacy that most Dark families have. It would be stupid of him to support a claim that will undermine his own potential.

 

Regardless, the realization that he was a Dark wizard surrounded by Light wizards and witches was a bitter event for Harry. He knew the prejudice of the Light towards anything Dark related. It was all so, so stupid in Harry’s mind yet he knew he had to keep his mouth shut.

 

If they knew he was Dark, they would shun both him and his parents. Harry did not want such fate for his loving parents. His parents were a loving couple who accepted everyone regardless of their magical inclination. That kind of personality already made them a bit of an outsider from the Light. They weren’t outright shun or anything negative, mostly a lot of Light wizards and witches would spend more time questioning their continued friendship with a Dark creature like his Uncle Moony or a member of Dark Family like his Padfoot.

 

That’s why he had debated heatedly with the Sorting Hat to not place him in Slytherin. The sorting hat had informed him that greatness awaited him in Slytherin and he would be able to do great things in the den of snakes.

 

He had been flattered. Honestly, the idea of staying in the same dorm his dear Reggie had stayed in had been tempting and having Uncle Sevvie as his Head of House sounded nice as well.

 

But no Potter has ever been sorted to Slytherin and being a Slytherin immediately branded one as Dark in the eyes of the masses.

 

He cannot afford to be revealed as Dark.

 

Not to mention, the prejudice he will receive from the traditional Slytherins would also make his life difficult. He might be able to do great things in Slytherin but the idea of being an outcast from the entire school was too risky to turn a blind eye to.

 

That’s why the hat had placed him in Gryffindor.

 

Life as a Gryffindor was… dull at most. The only highlights in being a lion were being the seeker of their Quidditch team and becoming the secret accomplice of the mischievous Weasley twins. He was nice to everyone simply because he was raised to be nice and he was part of the top 10 in each of his classes, most often top 2, much to Hermione Granger’s continuous jealousy.

 

It was not his fault that he had stock knowledge in most magical theory. Uncle Sevvie and Reggie liked giving him books as presents and he enjoyed reading. The only reason he wasn’t in Ravenclaw was because he was cunning enough to ask the hat to place him in the den of lions instead. The lions were not as observant as the eagles, making Harry’s life easier.

 

The fact that he was nice, smart and a very decent seeker (if he wasn’t being humble, he would say he was the best) had the hand in making him the ‘Gryffindor’s Golden Boy’.

 

Dear Merlin, he always had to bit the inside of his mouth to stop himself from gagging every time someone called him that.

 

Of course, the people he loved were proud of him.

 

His father and Padfoot were proud of him being a seeker, his mother and Uncle Moody were proud of him for keeping up his grades even with Quidditch while Uncle Wormy would always owl-mail him his favourite sweets every time he did well in exams and won a Quidditch match.

 

He knew Uncle Sevvie and Reggie were proud of him as well. The continued monthly owl-mails of new books ranging from barely legal Dark Arts to obscure magical theories from Reggie and Uncle Sevvie’s habit of calling him when the poor soul he had asked a hard question cannot answer and giving points to Gryffindor were a clear indication of their continued support of Harry’s academic career.

 

Of course, his continued excellence brought him in Dumbledore’s eyes.

 

It wasn’t like he hated the old goat. It was just… Dumbledore was a traditionalist. He believed in a clear cut between Light and Dark, equating it to Good and Evil. Harry may be young but he knew first-hand that magical inclination did not automatically place people in such a clear division of morality.

 

Reggie and Uncle Sevvie were his prime examples. They were both Dark and they both acted in such a not so nice way but that didn’t mean they were evil. It was just so stupid to divide their community in two clear groups when people were more complicated than that.

 

But Harry knew he had a role to play so he kept his mouth shut and never stared directly to Dumbledore’s eyes just like Reggie warned him about before he started Hogwarts. Uncle Sevvie promised he was going to teach him how to block his mind when his magical core was mature enough but that time has yet to come so Harry was forced to hide his wariness over Dumbledore under the pretence of a bashful boy.

 

Dumbledore liked him; that much he knew. For some unknown reason, the old goat enjoyed Harry’s company. They mostly talked about Harry’s progress in Hogwarts and Harry never outright lied to him but did give vague impressions of his House-mates.

 

He liked talking about Fred and George mainly because those two were a riot to be with.

 

Dumbledore seemed to realize that Harry had no real friends with the same age as him.

 

It was a bit true. He was polite to everyone but he could honestly say his only real Gryffindor friends were the twins and their relationship was more of a criminals-accomplice-type of relationship that real buddy-buddy friendship. He sure was not going to have a heart-to-heart talk with either of them anytime soon. Other that those two, the nearest friendship he had was with Neville but they weren’t exactly close. They were a bit close when they were young but the death of his father and the confinement of his mother in St. Mungus had placed him in his strict grandmother’s hands who kept Neville always close. This led to the play dates between them to stop due to Harry having influence of ‘unsavoury people’, according to the old hag. He barely even recognized the shy boy when they became dorm-mates. The only reason why he can even say Neville was the closest person he could say he was friends with was because Neville was the most docile of them and didn’t mind the silence Harry most often craved due to being surrounded by such hyperactive lions every day.

 

He supposed his academic rivalry with Hermione Granger was something akin to friendship in the girl’s eyes. They most certainly paired up more often than not in pair projects and activities mainly because they both knew that pairing with each other was the only way they wouldn’t need to carry the entire activity on their shoulders. She was still irked over losing to him academically and would spend more time in the library reading those boring Ministry regulated books in an attempt to usurp his place.

 

… or was she trying to usurp Tom Riddle’s place?

 

Aaaahhh, Tom Riddle…

 

He supposed that it wouldn’t be the complete story of his life if he didn’t emphasized the presence of Tom Riddle in his life.

 

He and Tom weren’t friends per say but they were… accomplices, Harry supposed.

 

He had observed Tom for a week and decided that he had the potential to be something great in the future. He was sorted in the den of snakes but his name was utterly muggle. He was what Harry could have been if he had let the hat sort him in Slytherin.

 

It had been a stroke of luck when he saw the boy being bullied and he had stopped Draco and his cronies during their first year. Harry took that time to introduce himself to Tom.

 

Tom had been wary of him, of course. As a snake, the rest of the populace was keened on avoiding him like a plague. Harry assumed Tom thought he pitied him or something.

 

Harry didn’t bother reassuring Tom.

 

Harry had started slow.

 

He would give Tom some of the books Reggie gave him with a note saying ‘give it back when you’re done’. Every time Tom would return a book, Harry would give him another one. He had focused more on Wizarding theories and history at first, to give the boy an idea to why his house-mates seemed so hate him. When Tom started talking to him, mostly asking clarifications or more in-depth information of a magical theory or a part of history, Harry simply smiled and answered to his questions, even giving suggestions or comments about them. After that, Harry became some sort of adviser to Tom, talking about Wizarding traditions and etiquettes. Tom didn’t need him to talk about schoolwork. The boy was a genius.

 

He was also socially and emotionally stunted.

 

That’s what Harry was focusing on. Tom had the potential to be great, he could see it, but without the proper guidance, Tom’s greatness will be one focused on fear and pain.

 

It wasn’t like he was trying to make Tom ‘good’. Harry honestly believed that everyone is both ‘good’ and ‘evil’ and it was the balance between the two that made a person a great one.

 

Harry was simply trying to keep the delicate balance of good and evil in Tom.

 

Circe knows, the boy was tipping horribly into the evil part because of circumstances surrounding him.

 

They fought sometimes. Mostly about morality but sometimes also because Tom was too power-hungry and that made him do rash decisions like coming into Dumbledore’s radar in a bad way.

 

Tom also hated seeing Harry act nice to everyone.

 

Harry thought it was sweet but kept his mouth shut.

 

He knew Tom valued his presence and wanted to keep him close. Harry was a fountain of Wizarding information and he was the only person Tom knew that gave him things such as knowledge without ever asking anything in return. He was also the only person Tom could talk to without the pretence of a mask.

 

Harry had to admit, he wanted to be with Tom everyday as well. His own mask, the Light wizard named Harry Potter, fell when he was with Tom.

 

It was during one of those times that he regretted not being placed in Slytherin but there was no use mourning over it. Harry had a role to play so he played it.

 

His correspondence with Tom was kept mostly private. They would meet up in one of the abandoned hallway, staring at the landscape outside while talking about this and that. Tom shared his desires to Harry and Harry simply listened.

 

Tom wanted to be the most powerful wizard in the world. He wanted to chance their world to his liking.

 

Harry realized that what Tom wanted was a meritocracy based government and he found himself actually liking the idea but he had some issues with some of Tom’s more radical ideas.

 

They had debated heatedly over them for hours. Harry tried very hard to make Tom see that a total disregard for what Tom sees as useless was stupid. Even the weakest rat can bite back if pushed to the very edge.

 

Harry tried to make Tom see that there are some things that must be compromised for the larger picture to come into fruition.

 

Harry would like to say he was successful in curbing Tom’s more ‘aggressive’ ideas.

 

He knew he couldn’t change Tom. He didn’t want to change Tom.

 

He simply wanted Tom to have what he desired and, for that to happen, Tom needed some help in the moral and logical department.

 

He was Tom’ shadow adviser, the person Tom went to when he needed someone to listen to his plans and didn’t mind being questioned about it. No one knew their relationship. Even Draco, who had been the reason why Harry had managed to approach the Slytherin in the first place, didn’t manage to piece it together.

 

Harry didn’t stop Tom from any of his plans. He let Tom focus his attention in devouring every piece of information the library of Hogwarts could offer him in their first year. He let Tom publicly be alone during classwork and excel all by himself. He let Tom obsess over finding out the identities of his parents.

 

Nonchalantly telling Tom how a heritage test from the goblins told Harry he was related to his godfather was a spur of the moment thing. Harry was totally not giving a hint because he wanted to help Tom.

 

Nope. Definitely not.

 

Harry did feel touch when he was the first person Tom sought out after taking the heritage test. The way the taller boy had animatedly talked about his experience, letting his mask down and showing his excitement at being the Slytherin’s heir made Harry’s own lips curve into a smile.

 

With the information of being Slytherin’s heir came Tom’s obsession over finding the Chambers of Secret.

 

Tom’s obsession had always been a double-edge sword.

 

It made him more focused and determined but it also made him lose focus on other things such as his long-term plan yet Harry indulged him and tried to help him find the legendary chamber.

 

They had found it by the end of their second year, just a month before finals. Well, it was more accurate Tom found it and dragged Harry to explore it with him.

 

Who in their right mind would put it in a girls’ bathroom of all places anyway?

 

They met the Basilisk and Harry noticed that Tom had been blushing while they talked but didn’t pry. It’s not like he understood what they were talking about in their snake-language.

 

The chamber was a trove of treasures. There were many pathways leading to secret exits and passageways but all of them needed a password that was spoken in Parseltongue. There was also a beautiful study filled with books, grimoires and tomes, most of which were banned or considered lost forever.

 

Harry had helped in smuggling some of the books off Hogwarts and hiding him in his room in their house by using one of the Potter house-elves.

 

When summer came, Harry visited Tom in the orphanage, carrying some of their smuggled goods for the two to read in silence. Tom forbad him from ever coming close to the orphanage and he always waited at the nearest park for Tom to appear.

 

Harry enjoyed the peaceful silence he and Tom had while reading their respective book, tome or grimoire in a random muggle cafe.

 

For some reason, Tom always paid for Harry’s orders. Perhaps it was his pride or perhaps it was his way of showing gratitude so Harry never pressed the issues.

 

If he always ordered desert that he would always push Tom to ‘try’ it, it was just his sweet tooth acting up.

 

Third year was the time Tom finally began his ascension in the hierarchy of the snakes. Harry knew mostly because his time with Tom had begun to shorten slowly and Tom’s excuses were now concerning his fellow snakes. Harry also saw how the snakes were slowly enthralled by Tom’s knowledge, power and charisma.

 

He should know. He was Tom’s first victim after all.

 

While Harry received his annoying ‘Gryffindor’s Golden Boy’, Tom became known as the ‘Slytherin Prince’. Unlike his title though, Tom’s title rarely left the privacy of the snakes’ den and the only reason why Harry even knew about it was because Tom had smugly told him.

 

He was proud of Tom, he really was.

 

But a part of him was also peeved by Tom’s declining presence in his life.

 

Before long, their daily talks turned to weekly talks.

 

By second term, it had become monthly talks.

 

By Yule, it had stopped.

 

He had used his invisibility cloak to place all the books, grimoires and tomes he had smuggled from the chambers last year to Tom’s bed, all wrapped to hide as ‘presents’ and a single note saying to not open it in front of people the night before everyone could leave for Yule break. He had encased them in expensive fabrics that kept anyone from finding the titles or magical signatures of the items using magic.

 

As a precaution, he also hexed the presents to make anyone who was not Tom have red hands which jingled every time the fingers move if they tried to peel the wrappings off.

 

Seeing Draco Malfoy with red hands that jingled each time he even tried to move his fingers during the train ride definitely worsen Harry’s already foul mood.

 

If Draco Malfoy was suddenly an unlucky klutz the entire ride… well, poor him.

 

Harry didn’t let his foul mood destroy the festivity of the Potter house. He loved his parents too much to dim their jolly disposition. He played his part and helped in decorating the tree and making the deserts. He flew with his father and played the perfect host for the Christmas dinner party. He tried his best to avoid the youngest Weasley who seemed to have developed some sort of hero-crush for the Gryffindor’s Golden Boy and passed notes to the twins on who to target for tonight. He even managed to only have to speak to Dumbledore for five minutes which he counted as a win since his usual talks with Dumbledore could last as long as two hours for some unknown reason.

 

By the end of the festivity, Padfoot and his father were so drunk that Harry had to usher them out of the house in case they do something horrible.

 

Leaving them alone for a moment to fetch water and two sobering potions led to the infamous Polka-Dot Hogsmeade incident.

 

No one even bothered asking Harry why he didn’t put the two in the master’s bedroom and guest room or why he didn’t ask a house-elf to fetch the water and sobering potions instead.

 

Perhaps Harry was being a bit vindictive and seeing his poor father get scolded by his mother and his dear Padfoot get treated to Reggie’s cold wrath stroked his bitter mood. It wasn’t like it was going to lead to any grave consequences. His mother and Reggie were too soft on them to truly give a painful punishment and the ministry have developed a kind of resigned acknowledgement that James Potter and Sirius Black will never stop pranking Magical Britain till time exist no more. It’s not like they could do anything to the Heads of House Potter and House Black anyway.

 

The two only had to revert Hogsmeade back to its non-polka dot glory in the end.

 

He had also accompanied Reggie to a Magical opera during his Yule break. Padfoot was supposed to be Reggie’s plus one but he was still punishing his older brother and there was no way in seven hells would Reggie risk the chance of being embarrassed during a Magical opera of all things. Reggie also knew that Harry enjoyed such events. Perhaps his dear cousin had felt Harry’s concealed foul mood?

 

He wouldn’t be surprised if that was the case since Reggie was one of the most observant persons Harry ever met.

 

Unfortunately, Reggie’s seats were surrounded by other pure-bloods, most of which tried to pretend Harry didn’t exist. One of those who didn’t was Draco… with Tom as the Malfoy’s plus one.

 

Tom had apparently been in the Malfoys’ care for Yule break and Harry wondered why he didn’t realize Tom was even in the train. It wouldn’t surprise him if the reason why their paths never crossed was because Tom was busy being worshipped by the snakes.

 

Everyone stared at him when he had coldly told Draco how disappointed he was that the Slytherin has resorted to the plebeian way of baiting someone which was a shame to their shared Black ancestry but Harry was too annoyed to care. He barely even heard Reggie agreeing that such behaviour was definitely something to curb soon towards their Cousin Narcissa. Draco had almost snapped at him but was stopped by his father.

 

The opera was tragically beautiful. It had been a story of a witch who did everything to help her beloved to become powerful. In the end, the witch had sacrificed her life so that her magic would be given to her beloved. Her beloved never even realized the witch had been in love with him.

 

Harry kept his attention at the opera the entire time but kept his mask and posture perfect. In this place, he wasn’t playing the role of Gryffindor’s Golden Boy. Here, he was playing the role of an heir to a respectable House and the companion of a high-ranking pure-blood. So he kept his cool and kept his attention at the play. He never showed any emotions to betray his slight attention to some of the conversations around him nor connote to knowing that Tom was staring at him.

 

When the opera ended, Harry remained by Reggie’s side, calling him ‘Cousin Regulus’ if he had to. He smiled at Narcissa and called her ‘Cousin Narcissa’ as he kissed the back of her hand. He knew they were all surprised that the Potter heir knew the proper traditional etiquettes and he knew that Reggie was proud of him for acting the way he was acting.

 

Because that was all it was: an act.

 

This was what Reggie needed from him. This was what was necessary to keep Reggie’s position in their community secure.

 

In the end…

 

This was his life.

 

The rest of his third year passed slowly and boringly uneventful.

 

Maybe the vicious Quidditch match between Slytherin and Gryffindor was something. Harry wasn’t sure if his bitter mood against the snakes had passed on to his companions or his sudden one-sided rivalry with Draco Malfoy, who personally took offense over his words during that opera, was to blame for it. Regardless, Harry did find some sick elation over making Draco crash to the ground with a very reckless move.

 

Almost crashing to the Slytherins stands was definitely worth the screams of the snakes and Draco Malfoy’s ungraceful yelp as he skidded to the ground.

 

Harry remained as their year’s Top 2 in all subjects, much to Granger’s continuous annoyance, but he almost reached Tom’s score in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Well, he always almost reached Tom’s score in that subject anyway. Tom was a genius and Harry was simply passionate over that class.

 

Many already assumed he wanted to be an Auror.

 

Dear Merlin, the last thing he wanted was to be required to hunt his own kind.

 

In all honesty, Harry wasn’t even thinking of what he wanted to do after Hogwarts.

 

His first three years had been spent supporting Tom Riddle and Tom Riddle no longer needed him.

 

Maybe that was where all the bitterness was coming from.

 

He had been the one who saw Tom Riddle’s potential yet he was the one who was thrown away.

 

In the end, Slytherin still won the House Cup, much to the annoyance of the lions. Harry played his part in consoling his fellow lions, the annoying Golden boy smile plastered on his face.

 

The train ride home and his third summer were uneventful as well. The only thing worth mentioning had been that one time during his birthday when a dark brown barn owl appeared by his window, carrying a package for him. Harry almost wanted to shoo the owl without taking the package when he saw the neat handwriting of his name on the package.

 

He knew exactly who had written it.

 

But Harry couldn’t find it in him to shoo the owl nor ignore the package. He let the owl in, took the package and gave the owl water and some stripes of bacon. The package had been plain brown paper and Harry tore it with a bit of repressed rage.

 

Inside were a letter and a golden locket.

 

Harry opened the letter first. It only said “It’s Slytherin’s locket. Wear it at all times.”

 

Harry scoffed at the obvious command but had wondered why Tom would want him to wear an obvious family heirloom. Harry grabbed the locket by the golden chain, keeping it from turning by placing his point finger at the bottom of the pendant. The green gems forming an S was a dead giveaway to its true heritage.

 

There was something about it that felt… soothing and protective.

 

Harry immediately dropped the locket, blinking for a moment before taking a step back. He stared at the locket on the floor as he grabbed his wand. He crouched near the locket and poked it with his wand.

 

He might not be able to use magic but he could channel his magical signature to his wand and into the locket. It wasn’t truly casting a spell as the practice was simply transference of magical signature.

 

Just as he expected, a hissing spark erupted from his wand, making Harry immediately jerk his hand away.

 

If an object has already been infused by a magical signature, another person’s magical signature would be rejected.

 

And there was only one magical signature that ever made Harry felt relaxed and protected.

 

The problem was what kind of charm or curse Tom had placed on the locket.

 

He couldn’t cast any detection spells because of the trace and asking one of those he loved to do it for him would raise some unnecessary questions. The locket was obviously very Slytherin by design and the fact that he would be asking for detection spells would raise some alarm on his dear loved ones.

 

He could, he supposed, keep it in that wooden box Reggie had given him last Yule. It was littered with anti-detection and isolation charms. It was a simple wooden black box with the Black crest, a family heirloom that Reggie gave as a sort-of reward for Harry’s behaviour in the opera.

 

In the end, he didn’t put it in the box.

 

In the end, he wore it under his shirt for the rest of the summer and he was actually dumb enough to find his Slytherin year-mates’ compartment during the train ride to Hogwarts.

 

Well, the hat did place him in Gryffindor because of his repressed act-now-think-later mentality that he has been trying to curb for years now. Unfortunately, he never did get to destroy it fully.

 

“Lost, Potter?” Draco’s smug tone made Harry almost hex the boy right there.

 

How dare he pretend to be Tom’s best mate, his second-in-command? He was pompous and he hid behind his father’s reputation. Merlin knows how many times the entire school have heard Draco say “my father will hear about this”.

 

“I’m looking for Tom.” Harry informed Blaise, knowing that among Tom’s inner circle, Blaise Zabini was the one who interacted with Tom most.

 

He and Tom might not be talking anymore but Harry still observed him. While Draco may be the most vocal of Tom’s circle, it was always Blaise who seemed to receive most of Tom’s words and vice-versa.

 

A part of him wondered if Blaise was his replacement.

 

The locket under his shirt gave that annoying warmth it always seemed to do whenever Harry grew frustrated over things.

 

“He’s with Professor Snape right now but I’m sure he will not mind if you stay and wait here with us.” Blaise replied, staring at Harry with cool calculating eyes. Draco looked ready to argue but Blaise continued, staring directly at Draco, “I’m sure Tom will be happy to see you.”

 

Harry didn’t bother to reply to that, walking inside the compartment and closing it behind him. Knowing Tom, he was bound to sit by the window, probably next to Blaise. A part of him wanted to sit next to Blaise, just to annoy Tom but he refrained from doing so, taking the window seat next to Theodore Nott instead. Blaise raised an eyebrow at the choice but Harry paid him no attention, staring at the window in boredom.

 

If he knew Tom would not be in the compartment, he would have brought a book with him or something.

 

Now, here he was, stuck in a compartment full of Slytherins, wondering why Tom had decided they would be his inner circle. Draco Malfoy was a no-brainer. His name alone would open many opportunities in the political world of their community. Blaise Zabini was a formidable duellist. Harry would know. He and Blaise were more often sparring partners in their joint DADA class since Harry was hell-bent on keeping away from Tom. Theodore Nott excelled more in the theoretical aspect of magic from what Harry could tell. Uncle Sevvie also enjoyed praising the boy in potions so perhaps he was more of a potion master in the making?

 

Pansy Parkinson was the mystery in this little compartment as far as Harry could tell. The girl was average at best: average grades, average looks and average presence in school. She excelled in sneering though. The girl was also quite the bully, especially towards Granger, but seemed to have stopped after Yule.

 

Now that he thought about it, incidents of bullying by snakes had seemed to have died by the end of last school year.

 

Harry turned his head towards Blaise and asked, “Did Tom order all of you to stop your petty bullying?”

 

“Watch your mouth, Potter.” Draco sneered, making Harry glare at his direction.

 

“Please practice what you preach, Cousin Draco.” Harry retorted calmly, trying his best Reggie impression as he stared at his relative with disdain.

 

“Tom has shown his displeasure in such activities.” Blaise replied with a small smile.

 

Harry returned it with a humourless smile on his own, knowing full well that Tom’s show of displeasure could only mean pain and suffering to the fools who received his ire. Harry returned his attention to the window and didn’t bother to continue the conversation. Blaise seemed unoffended by his actions and simply returned to the book he had been reading.

 

A few minutes later, the compartment door opened and Harry could see from the reflection of the window that Tom remained by the door, staring intently at him.

 

“Hello, Tom.” Harry greeted, keeping his eyes on the passing scenery.

 

“Harry.” Tom greeted back coolly, walking inside and stopping in front of Harry. He raised his hand towards Harry, hooking his point finger on the gold chain of the locket under his shirt.

 

Harry finally raised his head to stare at Tom as he asked, “What game are you playing?”

 

Tom stared at Harry silently for a few seconds before asking back, “Would you believe me if I told you I am not playing any games?”

 

Harry’s lips curved to a small smile as he replied, “Probably not. You’re always playing games, Tom.”

 

“Not to you.” Tom stared at Harry’s eyes as he added solemnly, “Never to you.”

 

Harry almost fell for it. Salazar knows how much he had missed being with Tom, being near him, hearing his voice directed at him, seeing his entire focus at him. But he had seen how well Tom used his words, how well Tom was with making one hear what they wanted to hear.

 

He should know.

 

He fell for it once already.

 

Harry’s lips curved into a bitter smile as he retorted, “Forgive me for not believing such sweet words, my dear Tom.”

 

“Mind your tongue, Potter.” Draco sneered, making both Harry and Tom glare at him.

 

“You would do well to remain quiet, Malfoy.” Harry warned harshly, “This is between me and Tom. As far as I’m concerned, the only reason why you fools remain seated is because Tom wants you to be.”

 

Harry turned to glare at Tom as he continued, “But I am not part of your circle, Tom, and I have no real reason to honour your desires now.”

 

Tom turned to stare at Harry as he asked, “What if I told you I want you to be?”

 

“Be your minion?” Harry finally stood, inwardly screaming at the fact that he was still shorter than Tom, “Sorry, my dear, I’ve already played that part for three years.”

 

Harry tilted his head as he added bitterly, “Or would it be more accurate to say it was two years?”

 

Tom continued to stare at him as Harry continued, “I’m just here to tell you to leave me out of any of your plans, Tom. I’m sure you will find an easier minion from the Light than me. I would suggest Bones or Longbottom. Also…”

 

Harry unclasped the locket, keeping his expression blank when the locket tried to burn him.

 

Good thing he has a high pain tolerance.

 

Knowing Tom would not take the locket, Harry threw the locket at Draco who caught it. Draco’s eyes widened and his jaw slacked once he recognized what he was holding while Harry kept his eyes at Tom as he continued, “Thank you for the gift but I must return it. Give it to one of your minions, instead.”

 

Tom’s eyes hardened and Harry wondered if he had finally pushed Tom too far.

 

Then he realized he really didn’t care.

 

Harry walked out of the compartment and he was about to open the door when Tom warned, “Wear the locket, Harry, or your dear cousin Draco will pay the price of your insolence.”

 

Colour drained from Draco’s face as Harry turned around, an empty smile on his face as he replied, “By all means, do what you desire, Tom. That’s what you do best, isn’t it?”

 

Tom glared at him as Harry sneered, “You take everything and throw them away when they’re no longer of any use to you.”

 

Harry stepped closer, letting their faces just inches away from one another as he hissed, “My last piece of advice to you? Those things you already threw away? They become bitter and rotten.”

 

“I hope it was worth it, Tom.” Harry whispered bitterly.

 

Harry turned around once more and opened the compartment door, freezing when Tom asked, “How long will you continue to play that mask, Harry? How long will you live your life living a lie for others?”

 

Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He opened his eyes and stepped out of the room. Harry turned around, placing his hand by the handle of the door as he replied with an empty smile, “I tried being myself once.”

 

“In the end, I was thrown away.” Harry slammed the door close, walking briskly away.

 

He knew it won’t be the last time he would hear from Tom but he was going to do his damn best avoiding the Slytherin.

 

Tom did it to him already. How hard could it be?

**Author's Note:**

> Weeeeeellllllllll, this was unintentionally angsty. It was meant to be a one-shot but then it grew out of proportion and now it’s going to be two-shot.
> 
> I promise the ending chapter will be… less angsty. XD
> 
> …………. I seem to have this habit of making Tom be an idiot who hurts Harry emotionally without realizing it. XD


End file.
